Long Shot
by gothicorca1895
Summary: Where there's life, there's hope...and Shen has just found the life that he least expected to see. Sequel to "If No One Will Listen." FINAL CHAPTER UP!
1. A criminal

_A/N – Okay, I normally don't put author notes at the beginning of the story instead of the end (or at least, I normally didn't do it in my last fic, _If No One Will Listen_) but I seriously think that I had to this time._

_Hi there, everybody! You are now looking at the sequel to my story "If No One Will Listen." Reading that particular fanfiction is recommended but certainly not essential. I think you'll still more or less understand what is happening here without reading it. What is essential, however, is that you know how my weird fandom works._

_You see, all of my stories are based on a really long and complicated RP I did with Cryssy-miu. Cryssy wrote a Kung Fu Panda fanfic called "Redeeming Light," which we sort of stuck to while we were RPing but didn't follow completely. As a result, all of the characters had the same names and same personalities between us two, but not all the same things happened to them…as you shall soon see._

_If you've never read Redeeming Light, I recommend it so that you can get the full story behind Shen's reformation. If you don't want to…well, you'll still UNDERSTAND this well enough, but it won't have nearly as much impact. There will be two OCs: Cryssy-miu's OC Kurisu, and my OC Mei-Xing (who has just about no role here). So, now that I have given credit where credit is due and explained why our fandoms are the same yet different in the best way that I can…please enjoy "Long Shot!"_

* * *

**Long Shot**

_Chapter 1: A criminal_

Many residents of the Valley of Peace dimly recalled a time, two and a half years ago now, when the Furious Five and the Dragon Warrior had ventured far away to save China from a peacock named Lord Shen. Most people didn't know much more than that. As the conflict had never gotten anywhere close to them, the most informative details on the battle that they had received were rumors, many of them too wild to believe – things like metal dragons that spit fireworks and a village of pandas that had been mercilessly slaughtered. What everyone was certain of, though, was that the evil villain had been put in his place by their very own Dragon Warrior, and that he would never endanger anyone's safety again.

What they WEREN'T aware of, however, was that this very same "villain" walked among them nearly every day.

Sheng Li – more commonly known as Shen or Lord Shen, although his current preferred title was "master" – had been living in the Valley of Peace for just over a year now, and sometimes he still couldn't believe it. For several months after his humiliating defeat at the hands of the "warrior of black and white," he had lurked outside of Gongmen City in the abandoned Dao-ming Temple, healing (sort of) and simmering with hatred and a desire for revenge. He had been found by an old goat mostly just referred to as "the soothsayer," although she had been Shen's nanny when he was a chick. She had tended to him and tried to convince him that vengeance wasn't necessary, but his insanity hadn't allowed him to listen to her. As soon as he was well enough, he had set off for the Jade Palace, planning to steal relics from the Hall of Sacred Warriors, but his progress had been interrupted by a small blue kitten that, at the time, he had never seen before…the same kitten that was striding beside him today.

"Why does Shifu always make US do the shopping?" grumbled Kurisu, the basket tucked in the crook of her arm swinging as she and Shen walked through the market. Indeed, Master Shifu had sent them down here in order to buy fruit, although Shen was also using the opportunity to purchase a few of his favorite sago tarts. He shrugged.

"You're a student, and I'm indebted," he replied, and couldn't help but wince a bit. He certainly was indebted.

Kurisu was actually the only student training at the Jade Palace who hadn't become a master yet. She had been adopted by Po's father Mr. Ping after a massacre on the village in Japan where she'd lived as a child, making her Po's adoptive little sister. She had escaped from the raze remarkably unscarred, both physically and mentally, and managed to be quite cheerful most of the time – even when Shen had kidnapped her as a means of revenge and gaining a ransom. He had quite proudly brought her back to Dao-ming after she had failed to interfere with his affairs and boastingly asked the soothsayer how successful this future endeavor would be. But his nanny's prediction had been far from what he expected. Instead of anything having to do with a conquest of China, she had foretold that Shen would not ever find happiness until he learned how to care about someone as much as himself…care about someone MORE than himself. The kitten was meant to be his path to redemption.

Of course Shen hadn't believed it. He had laughed at every attempt that the soothsayer made to try and get him to socialize with Kurisu, and had at first shown nothing but hostility towards the child. But that had never stopped her from treating him as if they were best buddies. This had been annoying, to say the least, until one day when a fight with his Nana had led to Shen having an utter breakdown – and he had cried for the first time in over thirty years. This proved to be the first step to relieving all of the pain that had built up in his heart. One event had led to another, and before he knew it, Kurisu had been given her own room in Dao-ming, and he was looking after her rather than imprisoning her. He had hardly dared to admit it, but he had actually grown attached to her.

Of course, he had no problems admitting that now, Shen thought fondly as he watched Kurisu mutter angrily and scoop plentiful handfuls of oranges and plums into her basket. His relationship to her was somewhere between a brother and a guardian. Oh, of course she was obnoxious sometimes, but it was usually impossible for him not to smile at her kitten-ish antics (one of her favorite hobbies was pouncing on his fan tail).

Life at Dao-ming had become surprisingly enjoyable – he had bonded with his nanny again, was sparring and playing with Kurisu on a regular basis, and rather liked the pleasant lightness that had come over his heart since his breakdown – when suddenly things took a turn for the absolute worst. A mob had learned that Shen was alive and of his whereabouts, and had run rampant through the temple and the rest of the city, causing unbelievable damage. He had managed to get Nana and Kurisu to safety and was fully intending to sacrifice himself to the mob for them, but just in time, the Dragon Warrior, the Furious Five, and Master Shifu had arrived in Gongmen City with the intent of getting their child back. They managed to help control the chaos – that is, until a few stray fireworks that were supposed to be used as weapons had caused a boulder to nearly flatten part of the city. Just in time, Shen had managed to tap into his new inner peace and stop it, becoming near-fatally injured in the process. But much to Kurisu's relief, he had survived.

His less-than-evil treatment of the kitten, as well as his willingness to put his life on the line for the city, had been what had drawn the attention of the Jade Palace masters. Even Po couldn't ignore these developments in the peacock who had once been his archenemy. Eventually, the verdict had been made: Shen and the soothsayer would be allowed to take up residence in the Jade Palace.

Shen still didn't know how he'd managed to get off so luckily. True, he had had to prove himself once and for all before officially being named a master and taken into the "family," but ever since then, no one had seemed all that bothered by him. Shouldn't they be a bit more alarmed by a formerly insane and genocidal peacock living in their midst? Maybe it was because they knew he was really reformed now; maybe it was because they knew that he had been seriously psychotic at the time of all his crimes. But most likely it was because of Kurisu. She cared about him too much to be parted from him, and they had humored her. That was what Shen thought, anyway.

He was thinking about it now as he and Kurisu continued their shopping expedition. The kitten was still glowering, clearly desiring something more exciting than purchasing groceries to occupy her time. She was very young and had a lot of nervous energy; if she had her way, then she would spend all day and the greater part of the night doing physical training and sparring, with breaks for eating and chattering happily to people in between. It was only because of Master Shifu that she was forced to do things like chores and meditating. As for Shen, he didn't much mind the menial work – it made him feel like he was doing something vaguely useful. He was, after all, VERY indebted, and couldn't seem to find anything that would make up for the damage he'd done.

When Shen looked back at the things he had done during his long period of insanity, he felt as if he were watching the antics of a possessed, hazy, bloodthirsty person. There were so many people that were gone because of his random bouts of anger. His parents were gone, dead from grief after they were forced to banish him; his best friend Xun was gone, slaughtered in cold blood when he had finally decided to stand up for himself; so many people that he had known in his youth and had cared for him were now gone because of his actions. His Nana always said that one day he would find a way to make up for what he had done, and she had never led him astray before; he just wondered how he could possibly –

"STOP, THIEF!" shrieked a voice from across the marketplace.

Kurisu's ears perked right up, and Shen smirked down at her. "Looks like we're going to be seeing a little action today after all," he said.

"Oh yeah!" Kurisu did a little jump, practicing a few kung fu moves in the air. "Get ready to feel the thundah – no, that's Po's move. THE LIGHTNIN'!"

Shen rolled his eyes.

That same morning, a dark, dirty figure had crawled into the Valley of Peace – or rather limped, as anyone that got a good look at it would have been able to tell that it was very injured. But no one did see it slinking into the marketplace. It padded forward on all fours; its clothes and fur, which were both gray, had been so darkened with filth that it was practically a shadow. The figure had lost all ability to speak, to think like anything but an animal. Its only concern was getting food.

For a while, it crouched under the merchant cart of a rather portly pig who was selling breads and other baked goods. It was waiting until the vendor wasn't looking; it had been hit and stabbed too often during its other thieving missions not to be wary, even if it couldn't really think at present. Finally, when it was certain that the merchant couldn't see it, it snatched the largest loaf of bread that it could find and took off running.

The pig noticed her missing ware and immediately raised a cry of, "STOP! THIEF!"

In due time, an albino peacock and a little blue kitten had rushed over to her cart. She recognized them; they both lived up at the Jade Palace, so they must have been here to help her. "What did he take, and which way did he go?" demanded the peacock.

"My bread!" the pig shouted angrily, and jabbed her hand towards where the figure was stagger-running away on all fours. "He went that way!"

Shen and Kurisu quickly managed to overtake the bandit, who seemed incapable of going very fast. When he heard them coming, he spun around, his dirty fur bristling in all directions. He growled, and the sound was somewhat muffled by the loaf of bread clutched in his fangs – he was a wolf.

"Hold it right – " Shen started…then suddenly, he skidded to a halt.

That wolf…

Shen's eyes narrowed. No, this couldn't be right. Surely he was seeing things. Surely he was just confusing this wolf with another – he remembered from when he had been commanding his army that many of the wolves looked the same. But even under the thick layer of dirt, the face looked very familiar…

And how many wolves had a bad left eye?

"Xun?" Shen asked softly.


	2. A second chance

**Long Shot**

_Chapter 2: A second chance_

"Xun!"

The wolf growled, his ears flattening as he took a step back, still on all fours. Suddenly, a raucous cough exploded from his throat. It was a harsh, sick sound, so strong that it caused him to drop the loaf of bread clutched in his fangs. He quickly scrambled to pick it up again, returning his attention to Shen and growling once more as he attempted to protect his meal.

"Augh!" Kurisu darted behind Shen at this display of ferocity. "Is he RABID?"

"I don't think so…" Shen crouched down, trying to find a glint of sanity in the wolf's eyes. "Xun, it's me! It's Shen…"

Xun's eyes widened, and for a moment it seemed as if the normal part of him was struggling to surface; but the hungry, sick, injured part was still much stronger, and all he could do was just try to defend himself. He snarled.

"Do you…do you recognize me, Xun?" asked Shen tentatively.

There was quite a lengthy pause…then Xun backed up, snarling slightly, gripping the loaf of bread as if it was his most prized possession.

Shen took a deep breath, more than convinced that his former friend was very messed up right now. "Come here…it's okay, I want to help you…"

Xun tried to growl again, but all that came from his throat was another loud, hacking cough.

Shen glanced at the kitten who was still attempting to cower behind him. "Kurisu, what kind of food do we have right now?"

"At the palace?" Her ears lifted a bit. "Like everything, duh."

"No, with us right now."

Kurisu pawed through her basked. "Oranges…plums…and a few of your sago tarts, too."

Shen nodded, recalling his childhood, remembering how he and Xun had happily munched on sago tarts beneath the trees in the courtyard. They had both loved those sweets. He carefully withdrew a single tart from the basket and cautiously offered it to the wolf.

Xun's reaction was immediate. He was so hungry that he practically snapped the tiny bit of food off of the peacock's outstretched hand, and then gobbled and ripped at it noisily. It was gone within a matter of seconds.

Shen flinched a bit. "Come here, Xun…" he beckoned softly.

Xun backed up a little more, eyeing him warily, in confusion, and…in recognition.

"We have more food for you…we can help you…just come with us…"

He coughed one more time, weakly. He looked as if he were trying to come forward. Then, without any warning, he collapsed at the peacock's feet.

"XUN!"

Shen dropped to his knees, giving the limp form a slight shake, but Xun didn't even stir. He took hold of the wolf's arm and attempted to pull him up with some difficulty. "Come on, come on…" Shen struggled and strained; it was no secret that he had never been very adept at strength training. "Ugh…you're heavy…"

"I-I'll help," Kurisu piped up nervously.

"Please," groaned Shen.

It wasn't easy to lug a large wolf who was pretty much dead weight up a flight of stairs. Clearly, the hike up to the Jade Palace wasn't going to be very enjoyable. Although Shen thought that Xun wasn't nearly as heavy as he should have been – in fact, he had almost no muscle mass anymore, and his ribs were visible through his rag of a shirt. Shen immediately felt flushed and hot with guilt. His old friend had clearly been spending his days foraging for food on the streets…because of him.

"So…" Kurisu had been looking at Shen curiously for quite a while, and had finally been too intrigued not to speak up. "You know him?"

Shen nodded. "He used to be the head of my army of wolves," he puffed, quite exerted from his load.

"Oh, so you know him well…"

"Very well." Shen heaved a sigh. "He used to be my best friend when we were kids…"

Kurisu's eyes widened. "Oh," she said, then quickly added, "Well, we're almost there…"

"I tried to kill him…" Shen admitted, his head feathers flattening. "In fact, I thought I DID kill him. He'll probably want to kill me once he regains his senses." He wanted to groan again; that was certainly one meeting that he preferred not to think about.

"You tried to kill your best – well, you were nuts then." The kitten shook her head dismissively. Anytime the subject of terrible things that Shen had done in the past came up, she always dismissed it with, "He was crazy at the time." As if that was an excuse for anything. He was always the first to admit that for the majority of his life he had been far from mentally sound, but to him that was just a statement, not a reason and not an explanation. Occasionally, he had seen people doubting whether or not he was still insane, and he didn't blame them. He had had too many days where he felt that something wasn't right with him.

When they finally reached the bunkhouse, Shen's chest was heaving and he was sure that his muscles would be sore for a week. He awkwardly brought Xun into an empty room and laid him on a bed mat, then sent Kurisu to go tell Master Shifu and get the healer. Then he leaned against the wall and watched the wolf twisting and writhing in bed, as if the sheets were hurting him. He sighed. "Hang in there, Xun…"

The Jade Palace healer, a slender jaguar with some condition called melanism that made her fur nearly black in color, was more than a little wary when she saw who her patient was. The healer – Mei-Xing, her name was – didn't know kung fu or any other fighting style, and her only advantage for wrangling unruly patients was her well-toned cat muscles. Oh, and she had one other quality that made her an effective healer – she could see auras. Shen wasn't sure he understood the whole theory behind seeing auras, but he did know that this talent made Mei-Xing remarkably accurate at spotting injuries and illnesses. He could tell that she was reading Xun's aura now, because she was creeping forward with that funny look of rapt concentration on her face. When she saw how much he was thrashing, her hand quickly darted out and snatched the sheet off of him.

Xun howled as it came off, and with utter mortification, Shen could see why. The sheet had been stuck to a number of infected-looking cuts and lacerations that were embedded all over his body. These hadn't been visible at first because of all the dirt and filth, but now they had been torn open again and glowed an angry, enflamed red.

A tear had formed in the corner of Xun's still-closed good eye. A weak cough rolled through him, shaking his entire frame.

"Well, you're in bad shape, aren't you?" said Mei-Xing. Her expression had barely changed; clearly, she had seen worse cases than this. "Looks like I've got my work cut out for me."

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_A/N - I'm sorry that these chapters are so short. I'm not sure why that is._

_By the way, every time you read or add this story to your favorites/alerts and don't review, sad baby Shen is neglected by his parents. Please think of sad baby Shen and give me more than 2 reviews._


	3. A wakeup call

**Long Shot**

_Chapter 3: A wake-up call_

Xun was not surprised when, upon waking, a thousand new aches and pains made themselves known all over his body. With his only working eye still closed, he wondered, vaguely, what he had gotten into that had resulted in so many new injuries. It wasn't unusual, of course, not anymore…but being used to it didn't make it hurt any less.

He didn't move for quite a bit, not just because of the pain, but also because wherever he'd found to crash last night felt…oddly comfortable. Almost like being in a real bed, although he hadn't been in a real bed for a year and a half and had all but forgotten what that felt like. But eventually, his acute nose informed him that this place smelled wrong – in fact, it smelled nothing like the forest clearings or back alleys where he usually took shelter for the night. Faint scents of incense and brewing tea and polished wood filled the air.

His insides tightened; he didn't dare open his eye now. Oh gods, he'd been taken into prison now, hadn't he? He'd stolen one too many things from merchant carts, and someone had finally caught him and locked him up. And after being on the streets and in the wild for so long, even prison felt comfortable and smelled nice to him…

"Is he going to wake up?"

Xun stiffened, his ears twitching involuntarily. Whoever had said that was close by, that was for certain.

"Soon." This was a different voice, a female's. "I gave him a medicine that should hopefully make him lucid. He should be around any minute now…"

Medicine? Xun had been in desperate need of medicine for quite some time now. His injuries had been deteriorating his physical state quite a bit, and he had recently developed a cough that persisted no matter how warm and dry he tried to stay. It reminded him a little of Shen, and how when they were kids Shen had always seemed to be sick with a cough. It made him ache inside to think of when he and Shen were little, though…

He felt someone gently scrubbing away the dirt on his face with a cool cloth. The touch of the damp fabric was wonderfully refreshing, and he opened his eye.

A shyly smiling face was leaning over him – dark, spotted, furry, with large gleaming yellow eyes. Some kind of a cat, by the looks of it. A panther, maybe?

"Wh…where am I…" he muttered. He pushed himself up a little, but a stabbing pain jabbed him in the chest, and he groaned as the black cat eased him back down.

"Easy," she told him gently, in the saccharine tone of voice that Xun had only ever heard from doctors. "You're at the Jade Palace."

"Jade…Palace?" Xun blinked; that name sounded very familiar. It definitely wasn't a prison, he could tell that much; as he looked around the room he was in, he saw that it was simple, but elegant and well-made. He was laying on a bed mat with clean sheets, bound in many places with fresh bandages, and his eyes were distracted by gleaming wood and finely-crafted hanging lanterns. He had been taken in, all right, but not taken into a jail.

As his eyes continued to move around the room, his breath caught in his throat when he saw what – or rather who – was sitting at the foot of his bed, watching him with an unreadable expression. He blinked rapidly and scrubbed at his eye, afraid that he might be sick and hallucinating, but the image of the very familiar albino peacock never wavered.

"Shen?" Xun exclaimed before he could stop himself, then quickly added, "I mean, ah…Lord Shen?"

Shen's head feathers flattened. "You…don't have to call me that," he murmured in a barely audible voice.

"Uh, I don't know about that," replied Xun testily. He recalled being threatened with a knife when he slipped up and called the peacock just plain Shen…or worse, Sheng Li. After Shen had thrown away their friendship and turned Xun into nothing more than his subordinate, such informal addresses were inexcusable.

But Xun, unable to keep from staring at Shen, couldn't help but notice that there was something very different about him. Was it his clothes? Yes, his robes were no longer the fancy, silk-hewn garments that he was used to seeing on the peacock! And there was something else, too…something about his eyes…

Shen's expression still couldn't be read. All he said was, "I'm not a lord anymore."

"Technically you weren't even after you returned to Gongmen," Xun couldn't help but point out, and then immediately winced when he realized what he had said, bracing himself to be struck or stabbed. But after nearly a minute, he was still untouched.

He opened his eye. Shen hadn't budged an inch from his position at the foot of the bed.

"Yes, you're right," he stated simply. "It took me quite a while to admit it…"

"What…?" Xun pushed himself up all the way this time, ignoring the pain. Why was Shen being so calm and tolerant all of a sudden? He hadn't been this way since they were chicks! Yet when he examined those ruby-red eyes again, he could only see a strange clarity within them – no anger, no insanity.

Suddenly Xun realized what the "unreadable" expression on Shen's face was: shame. But it had been so long since Shen had looked ashamed that he hadn't been able to place it.

Shen cleared his throat and stood up. "Do you know how long it's been?"

"No…" Xun coughed. Oh, that stupid cough was still there, huh? Although it didn't sound nearly as harsh as before.

Shen brushed his feathered fingers over the back of his long neck nervously. "Well over two and a half years since we last saw each other…"

Xun swallowed. "That long, huh."

"And, needless to say…a lot has changed."

"Tch, I wouldn't say so," the wolf snorted bitterly. "I'm still a deadbeat beggar and a thief."

"Well, I'm…" Shen sighed, his shoulders descending, looking as if he didn't know how he could possibly explain everything. Whatever "everything" was.

Xun's brain picked this moment to remember where he had heard the name "Jade Palace" before.

"Uh, Lo – Shen," he started uncomfortably, more than a little nervous about dropping the peacock's honorific title. "Did that…panther lady…say that this was the Jade Palace?"

"I did," answered the panther lady in question, who had been so quiet that Xun hadn't realized she was still there and jolted painfully when she spoke up. "And I'm a melanistic jaguar, not a panther. It's a common mistake."

"Uh, whatever." He looked up at Shen, his eyes flitting restlessly. "Well…isn't the Jade Palace where the Furious Five and the, um…Dragon Warrior live?"

Shen just barely nodded.

Xun exhaled, remembering all the trouble that the kung fu warriors had caused with Shen's plans. "So, what are you doing here? Are you a…prisoner or something?"

Shen shook his head very, very slowly. "I live here," he said.

Xun suddenly felt quite dizzy. "You live…"

"Here," Shen completed, nodding. "I was named a kung fu master."

Xun was pretty sure that his eye was twitching.

"And I'm sort of…" Shen looked like he had some reservations in saying this, but he decided to press ahead. "A totally different person now."

"Are you." Xun figured that he didn't have much choice other than to just go with this. He wasn't in any condition to get up, let alone get out of this place. "How so?"

"Well, for one thing, I'm not a psychotic evil dictator."

Xun's lips twitched – something about the plain way that last sentence was spoken struck him as funny – but Shen's somber expression never changed. "Well, I guess that's a start."

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_A/N - Sorry about the kind-of abrupt cutoff, but if I didn't end it there I would be rambling on for a while. Besides, I really wanted to get this up and I didn't have much more time to write it._

_For every review you submit to this story, sad baby Shen gets a warm hug. Last chapter he was hugged by four people. If you don't want sad baby Shen to have a breakdown, please review so his parents will love him again._


	4. A conversation

**Long Shot**

_Chapter 4_

For Shen, the experience of talking to Xun again was absolutely surreal, for a lot of reasons.

First of all, he'd thought that Xun was dead – and not only dead, but murdered by his own hand. He kept having uncanny flashbacks of watching the feather-patterned blade bite into the wolf's chest. Of course, Xun had been wearing armor at the time, so that must have been what kept him safe. But Shen had been hiding out in the forest behind the former site of the Tower of the Sacred Flame for months after his defeat, and he'd seen neither hide nor hair of Xun. Of course, you probably wouldn't be too anxious to reunite with someone who first threw away your friendship, and then tried to kill you…

But the thing was, Xun didn't seem mad about ANY of that. Maybe it was because he still thought Shen was dangerous, but he didn't act particularly fearful either. Of course, the conversation had a far from normal atmosphere to it – understandable, considering the relationship history between the two people that were having it – but there was no sense of grudging, no terror of being lashed out at again.

Shen himself was almost petrified, but it was mostly guilt making him afraid. He thought about when he and Xun had first met, a sickly peachick and a hyperactive puppy, both without any friends to speak of. They had stayed friends for so long, and it had seemed like it would always be that way. When Shen's sense of morality had begun to leave him, his friendship with Xun had been one of the last things to go. Finally, he had begun to think of himself as superior to the mangy mutt; after all, he was the prince-soon-to-be-lord, and Xun was just a palace guard! So he'd treated his best friend as a worthless subordinate. And yet Xun had remained unceasingly loyal, always supporting Shen even when he didn't agree with him, being awarded the position as head of the wolf army for his efforts. But it wasn't the same.

Shen wanted to apologize, but every time he tried to his tongue became knotted around the words. Eventually, he gave up and just answered whatever questions Xun was asking.

"Did…did you save me?" the wolf asked cautiously.

"I found you and brought you here," Shen replied. "Our healer fixed you up…she said she'd never seen someone with so many cuts and bruises."

"Comes from living in the wild and having to fight for your food," Xun explained grimly. "Or being attacked when you attempt to steal."

Shen certainly believed that, recalling how angry the merchant in the market had been when the wolf had stolen so much as a loaf of bread. "You must be starving."

"Quite," answered Xun immediately, not remembering his freak-out in the marketplace.

Shen turned to the door and cleared his throat. "Kurisu!"

A fuzzy blue head moved a little ways into the room. "Y-yes?"

"Would you mind cooking something up for Xun?"

"As long as he doesn't plan on eating me!" declared the kitten nervously. Xun chuckled hoarsely.

"He's better now, itty bitty kitty," Shen told her, and she nodded and scampered off, promising to make some tofu onion miso soup.

Shen looked over at Xun, no longer sure of what to talk about. "You'll like Kurisu's food," he finally said. "She's a good cook."

"Shen, I'll like ANY food right now," Xun retorted. "Take something half-eaten and moldy from the garbage, and I'll eat it."

"Well, we're going to give you better than that," said Shen firmly, finding that mental picture altogether disturbing.

Xun managed a small, anxious smile. "Th-thank you…"

"No need to thank me." Shen turned away, bowing his head. "A bowl of soup doesn't exactly make up for everything."

Xun's smile turned from nervous to wry. "Well, it's a good start right now."

When Kurisu reached the kitchen, she found that Po was already there, stuffing his face as usual. "Out of the way, big brother," she sniffed, shoving him away from the stove so that she could get through. She was small enough so that she had to stand on an upturned crate to reach it.

Po swallowed a mouthful of almond cookies before responding, "Good to see you too, little sis."

Before Kurisu's village in Japan had fallen victim to the massacre, her family had been friends with Mr. Ping, and whenever he came to visit, Kurisu would be sure to play with Po. He had been her best friend in the world, despite their over-a-decade age difference. After the tragedy, Mr. Ping had adopted her, so she and Po had become siblings as well as friends. Most people would consider it odd for a goose, a panda, and a cat to consider themselves related, even mentally, but that had never stopped Po and Kurisu from arguing like brother and sister.

"I have to make some tofu onion miso soup," Kurisu declared, setting a pot of water on to boil.

"Mmm, I could go for some of that right about now…"

"NOT for you!" Kurisu smacked Po's hand with a spoon as he attempted to reach over her and grab one of the onions she'd picked out. "It's for this bandit wolf guy that Shen is coddling."

"Excuse me?" Po exclaimed. "Shen is coddling a BANDIT?"

"Mhm. We found him wandering around the marketplace when we went shopping this morning. I guess he and Shen knew each other?" Kurisu shrugged as she began to dice her ingredients. "He was pretty badly beat up, and sick too, so Shen brought him here."

"Stupid peacock," Po muttered darkly. Kurisu sighed.

"You know, you two could at least PRETEND that you like each other."

"We try to!" Po crossed his arms. "And it's not like we HATE each other. We just…don't go in a room together."

Kurisu shrugged, returning to her cooking. She knew that Po and Shen avoided each other more because of awkwardness than because of mutual dislike. Still, they were both her family now, and she wanted them to get over themselves. She was happy with Po for accepting the fact that Shen had changed, but past that they couldn't seem to forget about what had happened between them…

"Does anybody but you and me and Shen know about this bandit?" Po asked.

"Mei-Xing does," Kurisu replied. "She didn't seem to think that he was dangerous."

"Maybe I oughtta go see him myself, then…"

Silence had fallen between Shen and Xun. Shen was internally debating whether or not it would be considered rude to walk out right now, and Xun couldn't think of anything else to say to the peacock. So they both jumped when the loudest possible thing interrupted them.

"Hey Shen, who's in he – " Po started as he pushed open the door to the guest room. When he saw the wolf laying in the bed, he froze.

Xun was just as shocked. "Augh! Augh, it's – YOU!" he cried when he got over the initial jolt of seeing the panda.

"You're that guy who hammered me in the face!" shouted Po angrily.

"You're the big plushy panda who chased me on a rickshaw!" yelled Xun, no less angrily.

Shen looked like he wanted to sink into the floor.

"What are you doing here?" demanded Po.

"What are YOU doing – " Xun began to echo, before remembering where he was. "Oh, that's right."

"I live here!" declared Po indignantly, crossing his arms.

"Well I – come to think of it, what am I doing here?" Xun was struggling to recall what had happened in the marketplace that morning.

"…you don't remember, do you?" Shen finally spoke up.

"No…" The wolf gave a slight cough.

"Soup's onnnnn!" Kurisu sang out as she returned, this time with a hot steaming bowl balanced in her paws. She passed it off to Xun, who downed the soup even faster than Po would have.

"I'm confused," complained Po, rubbing his head.

"So am I," Kurisu agreed. "We usually don't coddle bandits."

"I told you, he's not a bandit!" said Shen. "He's my…" But before the peacock could finish, his head feathers went back and his eyes became downcast.

"He WAS my friend," he completed softly.

Xun's ears went down.

"And it's not his fault that he was stealing food…he doesn't even remember it."

Xun lapped at the last few drops of soup in his bowl, surprised beyond belief. Shen had actually stood up for him. That was a refreshing change from all the insults, orders, and physical injuries…but it didn't change the fact that they were seemingly no longer friends.

Kurisu smiled at the wolf sympathetically, before asking, "So, what's he doing all the way from Gongmen City, anyway?"

Xun, who had known that this question had to be coming, hesitantly set his bowl down and looked up at the three figures towering over him. He sighed.

"It's kind of a complicated story," he said.

* * *

_A/N - I've been trying to update this story at least once a day, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to do that anymore, because I'm going back to school tomorrow. Yes, I have school in August. Don't ask, it's a long story. I will try to continue with the fast updates, of course._

_Sad baby Shen was lucky enough to receive five hugs last chapter. He has informed me that if you guys keep it up, he will make an appearance in another couple of chapters or so. If you would like to hug sad baby Shen, then please review this story when you finish reading it! Thank you!_


	5. A chance for redemption

**Long Shot**

_Chapter 5: A chance for forgiveness_

"After you…er, tried to kill me," Xun began, "I was floating around in the harbor for a while. Your knife had hit me, but just missed my heart. Eventually, I was found and taken in…and you'll never guess by who."

"Who?" asked Shen, barely able to look at him.

Xun grinned. "Exactly."

Shen's feathers flattened. "You're not going to tell me?" he muttered.

"No, no, you got it right." Xun was smirking, reclining in his bed contentedly. "Old Mr. Hu."

Shen gaped at him. Mr. Hu had been an old, cranky pig, a merchant in Gongmen City who had always said cruel things about the young Prince Sheng Li – just a chick back then – and Xun, who'd been just a scruffy puppy. As a plot of revenge, the two boys had put twenty-five frogs into Mr. Hu's cart, which had then escaped and run rampant throughout the city. Xun had been the mastermind behind that plot (Shen hadn't started taking the lead until they were considerably older) but both of them had been severely punished. Even looking back on it so many decades later, Shen still thought that it was wildly funny.

"Seriously?" he exclaimed, unable to keep from smiling at this.

"Uh-huh." Xun was laughing now.

Shen couldn't help but snicker. "I guess frogs in his cart didn't look so bad after the other stuff I did."

"Not hardly." For a moment they were grinning at each other, all but their long-ago prank momentarily forgotten, but unfortunately it couldn't last. The awkwardness and (on Shen's side) shame caught up with them once again.

"Well…we heard rumors that you were still alive, and figured that they were true," Xun continued. "The mob in the city confirmed that. I wanted to go looking for you, but I was still hurt and Mr. Hu was ill; I had to take care of him. After six months, he died." The wolf heaved a sigh. "And then I was alone and wandering again."

"I was alive…finding redemption just by kidnapping the right person." Shen's smile had faded, but a ghost of it returned as he looked towards a beaming Kurisu.

"And the rumor that you had a little girl with you was true too, I guess," Xun said, his eyes flitting over the kitten.

"Well, it's not like Kurisu's one of my henchmen or anything…" Shen remembered all too well how suspicious the city had been of her, thinking that she was at fault for assisting him or some other such nonsense when that wasn't the case at all. "She started out as a hostage, but eventually she grew attached to me. And…vice versa," he admitted.

Xun had to smirk a bit; the thought of Shen getting attached to anyone, never mind a little kitten, was extremely amusing to him. "So I see."

"…would you like another helping of soup?" Shen indicated the empty bowl sitting beside the bed.

Xun looked at him as if he had just asked whether or not the sky was blue. "Sheng Li," he said, finally comfortable enough to call the peacock by his full name, "that bowl of soup is the first thing I've eaten in two weeks. I was on the verge of starving to death and was ready to kill you for a loaf of bread. YES, I would like some more!"

"Why don't you go get a bigger bowl, itty bitty kitty?" Shen told Kurisu, who nodded and obediently scampered off. Po followed her, giving the peacock a questioning look (which he decided to ignore for the time being).

Xun chuckled. "Itty bitty what?"

"Um, itty bitty kitty…" Shen's face felt hot; he wasn't used to decoding his term of endearment for Kurisu. "It's just a thing I call her. She's got an even worse nickname for me."

"Oh?" Xun's ears perked up; clearly, he had never lost the instinct for finding fodder to tease Shen with that he had developed when the two of them were children.

"She calls me…" Shen had been debating whether or not to say it, but he figured that it might lighten the mood. "Ugly chicken."

Xun barked out a genuinely amused laugh. At first it made Shen jump, until he realized that it was nothing bad; it had just been so long since he'd heard the wolf laughing in real happiness that he'd become unused to the sound. And now that he thought about it, "ugly chicken" was a lot like Xun's childhood nicknames for him – "chicken" or "bird brain," terms guaranteed to make Shen rise to the bait and do something that would get him in trouble.

Of course, thinking of childhood made him think of something else, too.

"You know, Nana will probably want to know you're here," he remarked suddenly.

It took Xun a moment to connect the name "Nana" with the face of the soothsayer. He couldn't remember the last time he'd heard Shen call her that.

"Oh," he said. "That's right…" He hadn't much thought about the old soothsayer before now, but if Shen was here, then she probably wouldn't be far behind. She had been Shen's protective, loving nanny long ago, and even when Shen had attempted to throw that bond away, he had still kept her by his side. He'd claimed that he was holding her prisoner in the Tower of the Sacred Flame before he set out to invade China, but some prisoner she'd been; she had been allowed to stay in her quarters and had basically possessed free reign of the throne room. She had always cared for Shen…but he wasn't the only one she'd cared for.

When Xun was a cub, his parents, both of whom were palace guards, had never managed to stop arguing with each other. And when they weren't screaming at each other, they were screaming at him. His father especially had always been yelling about how, "I don't have time for you, boy! I've got a job to do! Now, go off and don't get into trouble, or you'll see the consequences!" And yet his parents would be shocked when he DID get into trouble; Xun would be brutally punished by his father, and then his parents would argue about whether or not the treatment had been too harsh. It had been enough to drive anyone crazy.

After Xun had befriended Shen, the soothsayer had all but adopted the pup, taking care of him and giving him love and attention whenever he needed it. Her punishments were always a great deal fairer than the ones his parents used, and after they were over she would comfort him, instead of staying mad for days like his mama and baba. He'd always known that she was disappointed in him, not because he had stayed loyal to Shen, but because he had never tried to sway the peacock away from his dark path. He wondered if she was still mad…

"I'll get her," said Shen, and left.

The soothsayer was in her room, mending a visible bite mark in the hem of one of Shen's robes, when she heard the door open and saw the peacock who she still considered to be her chick standing in the doorway. "So, Nana, you'll never guess who Kurisu and I found at the market today," he said.

"Hm?" answered the soothsayer vaguely, barely looking up.

"Xun."

The soothsayer's work dropped from her hooves in absolute shock. Shen looked as if he had been expecting this reaction; his face was oddly grim. "Now you can take 'you killed your own best friend' off the list of things you like to guilt me with," he muttered.

She glared at him, hurt.

Shen heaved a sigh. "You know I didn't mean that…"

Without a word, she straightened up her sewing work so that she could continue it later, grabbed her walking stick, stood up, and briskly walked out of the room.

"Nana!"

Shen followed her, seeing that she was still sore over his comment, desperately flailing, "Nana, I'm sorry…I just…I feel like I can't think straight right now! I'm sorry…"

The soothsayer could tell immediately which room was Xun's; it was an open door that had been closed and empty this morning. She strode in, ignoring Shen as he entered behind her, and happily exclaimed, "Little Xun!"

Xun had been stretched out in bed nonchalantly, and now sat up, an unavoidable smile coming to his face. He didn't say anything, but only because he didn't know whether to call her "Nana" or "soothsayer."

"How are you?" asked the soothsayer, also smiling as she knelt beside his bed.

"I think not so good," Xun answered, distastefully eyeing a stack of medications that the healer had left for him.

"Ah, but you're alive!" He was glad to see that the knowing glint had never left her eyes. "And that's one step ahead of what I thought you were, dear."

"What? You mean, you couldn't just look into your magic bowl and see I was alive?" he demanded jokingly, pretending to be appalled at the very notion.

She chuckled. "You can't be too badly off if I'm already seeing that infamous sense of humor. Where have you been all this time?"

"Around," he responded uncomfortably. "So, uh, how have you been?"

The soothsayer considered this offhand question very carefully, and finally answered, "Adjusting."

"I guess there's probably a lot to adjust to, then." Xun thought about seeing Shen being considerably not insane, thought of the fact that they were now being housed by the very people who had gone up against them before, and wondered if his eye was twitching again. "I noticed that Shen is calling you 'Nana'…can't remember the last time I heard him say that."

"Ah…" The soothsayer seemed to sink deeper into thought, contemplating the first time that Shen had called her Nana again. It had been during their stay at Dao-ming, when he had broken down completely. Before then, she'd always been "soothsayer" or "you old goat."

Shen, who was standing in the doorway, looked back and forth between his nanny and his old friend…then abruptly walked out.

Xun sighed. "It's good to see you again…Nana," he finally submitted, and her smile visibly broadened. "Has it really been two years?"

"Almost three, actually. It's hard to believe, I know."

"It's refreshing to see you're not mad at me…"

"Mad at you?" The soothsayer seemed surprised at the notion. "Why would I be?"

"Well, because…" Xun's ears went back. "Because I always stood by Shen and never tried to stop him."

"That doesn't matter anymore," she said firmly, never ceasing to look him in the eye. "What's past is past."

"I'm glad you think so." Xun shifted in his bed; he was still trying to get over the weirdness that he HAD a bed, that his stomach was full of hot food, and that it seemed that he had been reasonably forgiven…although he had no idea what the other kung fu warriors thought of him. "It's nice to know that someone still cares."

The soothsayer frowned. "Shen still does…" she pointed out.

"I guess so…since he saved me." Xun didn't bring up the "even-though-he-tried-to-kill-me" line that ran through his head.

"You're his best friend," she said.

"Was," he corrected glumly. "He said I WAS his friend."

The soothsayer pursed her lips. "I know my chick; he thinks YOU hate HIM."

"That…doesn't sound like Shen at all."

"The Shen you knew is thankfully gone; the chick you knew is back."

Xun shook his head as if to clear it. This was a lot of information to take in within a couple hours' time; he felt as if everything he was seeing and hearing right now might just be some insane dream, and he would wake up and be back out on the streets, or worse – imprisoned. But all he said was, "Looks like I've got a lot to catch up on."

"Indeed!" chuckled the soothsayer. "But for now, you should lie down."

"Mmkay…" Xun settled down, pulling the light blanket provided by the healer up over him. His various injuries still ached dully and there was a tickling sensation in his chest just daring him to cough, but all in all he was better than he'd been in two years, ever since Mr. Hu had died. He had a place to crash, a bed, and the promise of warm food to keep him going now.

But as he began to drift off, as he heard the soothsayer chuckle again and quietly make her way out of the room, all he could think was…

How long was this going to last?

* * *

_A/N - Sad baby Shen has informed me that if he gets enough hugs, he will make an appearance in the next chapter. If you would like to hug sad baby Shen, then review after you read or add this story to your favorites/alerts!_


	6. A memory

**Long Shot**

_Chapter 6: A memory_

Shen was sitting outside on the steps of the Jade Palace, hardly moving, thinking about his bittersweet reunion with Xun. "Bittersweet" really was the best word to describe the whole thing. Just that morning, he'd been thinking about how nice it would have been if he'd never stabbed Xun, and then the wolf had appeared in the Valley of Peace as if by magic. But his sorry state was a living, breathing example of the damage that Shen had done, that could never be fully repaired no matter how hard he tried.

If only he hadn't been so tongue-tied about apologizing; if only he and Xun could go back to being friends again, best friends forever. He fondly called up all the good memories he had of the two of them together, shutting his eyes as he sank deeply into ancient nostalgia. Oh, he remembered this time when they were seven…

_Shen was out in the courtyard alone, with no one around to keep an eye on him, not even the soothsayer. That suited him at the moment, of course. He had just overheard his Nana telling Lord Jin about how much trouble it was to take care of a sickly albino peachick. Now Shen was sniffling with hurt and anger, mortified at hearing that even Nana thought he was a bad color, bad omen._

_Just then, Xun stormed outside, his tail rigid and his ears flat. He spotted Shen and immediately stormed over to him. "I hate them!" he shouted._

_Shen sniffed and wiped at his eyes with an oversized sleeve. "Who?" he asked._

"_My parents!" declared the wolf cub angrily. "They're always arguin'!" Then he noticed that Shen was looking down and still sniffling. "Oh…are you okay?"_

"_I'm mad, too!" Shen was not one for the scream-and-yell-and-throw-a-tantrum variety of getting angry, especially not when he was so hurt from hearing his Nana say something like that. His own Nana…_

_Xun, with his face all scrunched up and glowering and trying to look fierce, was the perfect image of a petulant puppy. "How come YOU'RE mad?"_

_Shen told him about the conversation between the soothsayer and Jin._

"_Stupid goat," muttered Xun when the peachick had finished._

"_Don' call Nana…" Shen's head feathers lowered in annoyance. "Well, she kind of is…"_

_Xun sniffed, the first traces of tears appearing in his smoldering eyes. "I hate it here…"_

_Shen thought about all the children that made fun of him, his parents never having time for him, and even his nanny seeming to think that he was trouble. "Me, too," he said._

"_That settles it, then!" exclaimed Xun._

"_Settles what?"_

"_Us leaving!" Xun leaned towards his smaller friend, wearing the smirk that Shen recognized from so many plots and pranks gone awry. "We're going to…run away!"_

_And so from there, their plan to run away from Gongmen City was put into place. According to Xun, the best thing to do was to walk to the harbor, stow away on a raft or boat, and sail to Taiwan to begin new lives. Shen had several doubts about the technicalities of this idea. For one thing, the harbor was on the other side of the city from the Tower of the Sacred Flame, and it wasn't a short walk to get there. They would have to sneak out past not only their parents and the soothsayer, but also a fleet of guards stationed at every exit to the palace. And how were two seven-year-olds supposed to take care of each other, anyway?_

_But as usual, he let himself be pressured into leaving. That evening, his Nana mostly left him alone, as she knew that he was upset with her for what she had said (she had resolved to explain to him what she'd meant when he was less angry). Shen used the opportunity to pack a spare robe and some sago tarts to eat in a cloth bundle, so that he could take these "supplies" with him. He put himself to bed that night, and stayed up past midnight so that he could meet Xun at the gates. Finally, it was time to go, and he hurried out of his quarters, yawning all the while._

_Sneaking out of the palace turned out not to be a huge problem for two small boys who could be very quiet when they needed to, but once they managed to get out into the city they found something else that would hinder their progress: it was raining._

_The rain made Shen nervous; he'd never gone out in the rain without getting sick, but when he mentioned this to Xun, the puppy said, "You're just makin' a excuse 'cause you're chicken!" And so of course they continued their journey, as Shen hated to be called chicken._

_They walked and walked, and sure enough, Shen began to feel worse and worse. He was exhausted and dizzy; his head somehow felt light and heavy at the same time. Finally, he felt as if he was unable to take another step._

"_Xun, I…I don't feel good. I wanna go back," he cried, and his words were punctuated by a cough._

_Xun turned to him, his fur slick and stuck to his face from all the rain. "We can't!"_

"_Please!" Shen begged, coughing harder. "I really don't feel good! Please, let's go back!"_

_Xun crossed his arms. "Forget it, Shen! I'm not going back to my parents!"_

"_Please!"_

_The cub's ears flattened in exasperation. "Fine, you go."_

"_You gotta come with me!" Shen gripped his friend's arm. "I don't know the way back! We should never have done this! I wanna go HOME!" he sobbed._

_Xun heaved a sigh. "Fine…I'll take you back."_

"_You're staying, too!"_

_He hesitated._

"_You're my only friend!" Shen pleaded. Not all of the dampness on his face was from the rain now. He gave a rather harsh cough, then whispered, "I don't wanna lose you…"_

_Xun considered this for a moment longer, and then…he smiled._

_He led his shivering friend back in the direction of the palace. Shen was following Xun quite slowly and dizzily. But they'd been walking for not even ten minutes when he suddenly stopped up short. His eyelids were getting heavy. "Xun, 'm dizzy…" he mumbled._

_Xun didn't show how alarmed he was at this. "Shhh…it'll be okay," he promised, keeping Shen held up. He tried to move forward again._

_Shen couldn't move. Everything was spinning, and it hurt just to breathe. His eyelids felt heavy, so heavy…he just wanted to sleep…_

_With an awful hacking, raspy cough, he crumpled to the rain-soaked street._

"_SHEN!"_

_Xun crouched down and shook him frantically, but Shen didn't move one iota, his chest rising and falling only barely. Xun's head whipped back and forth as he searched for someone that could help them, but no one was out at that time of night, or in the rain. So as best he could, he scooped the peachick into his arms and started towards the Tower of the Sacred Flame once again. Shen didn't even groan._

_The trek back was long, cold, and miserable, and when Xun finally made it to the gates an hour and a half later, both children were drenched and chilled to the bone. Shen still hadn't woken up._

_The guards intercepted Xun and led him back into the palace, where the soothsayer rushed up to him almost immediately. "Oh, thank the gods!" she cried, enveloping them in a hug._

_Xun couldn't hug her back since he had Shen in his arms. He was crying hard. "Nana, don' be mad…" he sobbed._

_The soothsayer had tears running down her face, but her firm tone of voice was unmistakable as she said, "Oh, I am mad! But we'll worry about that later…" And she quickly brought them back to her quarters and began to draw a hot bath._

_Shen still hadn't stirred the entire time, so she stripped him of his robe – which was nearly plastered to his feathers by rainwater – and toweled him off before dressing him in his oversized sleep robe. Xun tried to explain what had happened, but everything was muddled by his sobs, and all the soothsayer could really understand was, "Shen is sick – he fell down." _

_With the efficient pace that only a mother could possibly manage, she put her chick to bed, sent for the healer, and then gave Xun a bath, trying to warm him. Once his developing fangs had stopped chattering and he was in dry clothes, she wrapped a blanket and her arms around him, trying to calm his endless crying._

"_Mama and Baba are gonna kill me…I didn' mean for Shen to get sick…he didn' even wanna leave…m'sorry, I didn't mean to…!" he wailed._

"_It's all right, darling," the soothsayer hushed him. "Shen will be fine…this has happened before, everything is going to be fine…"_

_Shen didn't wake up until long after the healer had arrived, while Lady Biming was sticking him with acupuncture needles. "Wha…where 'm I…" he mumbled, struggling to open his eyes._

_The soothsayer was already sitting beside him, and she gripped his little hands tearfully when she saw that he was awake. "You're home, dear," she murmured. "You're home…where you belong."_

"Shen?"

Shen jumped, his head jerking upwards. He had been so immersed in his reverie (had he even dozed off a bit?) that he hadn't noticed Kurisu coming up behind him. He sighed, turning to her. "What is it?"

"You look all sad," she said, sitting on the steps beside him.

"I am sad…"

"But you just found your best friend!" she exclaimed.

"He…there's no way he's my best friend anymore…" Shen stared at a small crack in the stone steps, absently rubbing his finger across it.

"Of course he is!"

"But I tried to kill him…"

Kurisu thrust out her bottom lip, mocking his poutiness. "He didn't seem mad about that at all."

"It's my fault that he's like this," Shen continued, not cheered up in the least bit. "And to make things worse, I said something stupid and now Nana's mad at me." He sighed again.

"Oh, you know Nana doesn't stay mad long," said Kurisu rather cheerfully. "Just go say you're sorry."

"But – "

"Say you're sorry!" She yanked him to his feet. "And stop moping around so much, you ugly chicken. No one wants to see you having a pity party."

* * *

_A/N - This is the flashback section I've been promising, although really, sad baby Shen didn't get enough hugs for you guys to earn it._

_Every time you read or add this story to any kind of list without reviewing, sad baby Shen gets sick AGAIN. If you would like to preserve sad baby Shen's physical and mental health, please drop this story a review. Thank you!_


	7. A regret

**Long Shot**

_Chapter 7: A regret_

The gods of good timing did not appear to be with Shen that night, because he couldn't apologize immediately, to either one of the people that he owed it to. Xun was asleep, and the soothsayer was in the kitchen finishing up dinner. Dinner – Shen had forgotten all about that. As if he was really going to have much of an appetite tonight. All too soon, though, he was forced to take his seat at the table with all the other Jade Palace residents, and the less-than-pleasant evening meal began.

Po must have spread the word about Xun's arrival to everyone else, because Shen was almost immediately bombarded by questions from all sides until it was impossible for him to enjoy his meal (which ironically was plums over rice, one of his favorite dishes).

"Why didn't you tell me when you brought a BANDIT here?" demanded Master Shifu.

"Is it really the wolf boss? Where did you find him?" Viper wanted to know.

And, of course, everyone – absolutely EVERYONE – was asking, "You mean you don't just know him from trying to take over China?"

Finally, Shen gave up on pretending to eat and not hear the queries, and he set his chopsticks down with a loud clank. "All right," he submitted, "If everyone wants to know, I'll give you the abridged version. His name is Xun, not 'the wolf boss,' and Kurisu and I found him in the marketplace today. And he's not a thief."

"Kurisu said he was stealing, though…" Po pointed out.

"He wasn't in his right mind," Shen answered, without looking at the panda. He never made eye contact with Po, if he could help it.

"He was totally nuts!" Kurisu contributed, rather unhelpfully. She gestured wildly as she spoke. "We were just down there shopping, and all of a sudden this lady yells, 'STOP! THIEF!' And I was like, 'Oh yeah, get ready to feel the lightnin'!' And Shen and I ran down there but I guess Shen recognized him. All I saw was this crazy wolf and I thought he was rabid! But Shen said something about them being friends when they were kids – "

"That's enough, Kurisu," interrupted Master Shifu crossly. "You sound as if someone's let you into the pure sugar again."

Shen, who had been sinking lower and lower into his chair as this speech progressed, directed a nod of silent thanks towards the grandmaster.

"I treated him for cough, fever, multiple puncture wounds, a nearly broken ankle, and various cuts and bruises," Mei-Xing spoke up, much to the surprise of everyone. The healer was nearly always silent, especially at mealtimes. She wasn't very good at socializing. "Not to mention, sever malnourishment. Every bit of evidence suggests that the wolf was not what you'd call sane when he stole that loaf of bread."

"That's all very well," said Master Shifu gruffly, "but why didn't Shen or the kitten come get me when it was clear that he wasn't going anywhere? Civilians are not to enter the Jade Palace without my permission!"

"I'm sorry, Master Shifu," said Shen, sounding much calmer than he felt. "I was a bit distracted. You see, Xun and I were childhood friends, and I only brought him here because I felt like I owed him something after I tried to stab him. I just…" He sighed. "Wasn't thinking."

Master Shifu appeared to be considering this, but he didn't press the matter further. Po, Kurisu, and the Furious Five were all rather curious and kept asking Shen about this alleged friendship. Shen answered their questions in the briefest possible way, but even that led to even more queries and demands.

"You've really known each other since you were five?" This was from Crane.

"How come you didn't have any other friends?" That was from Kurisu.

"From what I saw of you two, you never acted like friends…I wouldn't have guessed that you were!" This from a stupefied Po.

And then at last Tigress spoke, who of all the people in the Jade Palace seemed to have forgiven Shen the least. "Do you usually try to kill your friends?" she asked him coldly, her eyes flashing.

Shen opened his mouth, then quickly shut it when he felt a familiar stinging starting up in his eyes. Those words had been his breaking point. He abruptly stood and stiffly strode out of the room, leaving his mostly-untouched plate of food behind.

"Tigress!" hissed Viper. "Was that really necessary?"

The soothsayer watched Shen exit with barely disguised concern. Even though she hadn't spoken to him all through dinner, and was sure that he was under the impression that she was angry with him, she had been observing the conversation between him and everyone else with increasing worry. Kurisu had told her earlier that Shen was more upset than enlightened at Xun's presence. So she finished up her meal, retrieved her walking stick, and headed to his room in the hope of making things right.

Shen was seated on his bed mat with his back to the door, trying to meditate but finding himself unable to do so. His mind was in too much turmoil for him to be able to let go of thought and time, roiling all the more at the thought that Xun was only a few rooms away, bedridden because of him. There were tears on his face, and every so often he would reach up to halfheartedly swipe at them.

The soothsayer entered his room quietly, only making her presence known when she spoke. "Darling," she said.

Shen stiffened at the sound, keeping his eyes shut as further tears threatened to brim.

She lowered herself into a sitting position on the bed beside him. If he had been smaller, she might have patted her lap for him to come to her. "Tell me what's wrong."

"Why should I? You're already mad at me," he responded sourly.

She sighed roughly. "I'm not, but I will be if you keep speaking to me like that."

"I never meant to u-upset you," said Shen, not opening his eyes, and there was an audible catch in his voice.

Her eyes creasing in worry, the soothsayer reached over and began to gently rub his back, urging him to cry if he needed to. Upon realizing this, he quickly reached up and gave his eyes a haphazard wipe on his sleeve. "I'm f-f-fine…"

"I don't think so." Her voice was stern now. "Don't lie to me."

Shen took a deep breath, willing himself not to sob. He was going to need all of his breath in order to explain this.

"I just…I don't know what to feel! I'm glad that Xun's alive but ashamed of what I've done to him! I want to apologize but just the thought of it frightens me! I don't…kn-know how…t-t-to fix this…"

He lowered his head into his wings, his shoulders heaving silently. The soothsayer pursed her lips.

"Well, first things first…apologize to Xun."

"I-I…" Shen's voice was cracking, but at least he had managed not to sob out loud so far. "But if he doesn't forgive me…"

"How will you know if you don't try?"

"I will try…" He swallowed. "But that doesn't mean that it doesn't scare me…"

"I know," she agreed, pulling his head down so she could kiss his forehead. "Wait until he wakes up."

"I wouldn't want him to see me like this, anyway…" Shen muttered.

The soothsayer chuckled and reached up to wipe the tears away from his eyes. "Because he's never seen you cry before? I recall a time when you were both six and both punished by me; the two of you cried together for a good fifteen minutes."

"I'm not a chick anymore," he murmured. Half of him was embarrassed at being treated so babyishly, while the other half found it oddly comforting.

"Still, you've both cried plenty."

"But I'd rather be composed when I apologize…"

The soothsayer stifled an eye roll. What was it going to take for Shen to realize that crying was not synonymous to showing weakness? "He's not going to look down on you if you cry…"

"No…he'll just look down on me for everything else I've done."

She exhaled roughly. "Enough of that, Shen. YOU are the only one holding your sins against you."

"And how can I not?" he demanded, feathers flaring, his irises glittering with unrepressed guilt and pain.

"It is time for you to forgive yourself…"

"I…I can't…" Shen's eyes were closed in remorse again; he couldn't possibly forgive himself, not when there was proof of his evil just a room or two down the hall. He didn't deserve to have his Nana; he didn't deserve to have Xun as a friend; he didn't even deserve to be here right now –

"Yes, you CAN," the soothsayer declared firmly. "I have forgiven you; Kurisu has; the grandmaster has; your parents have; even Po has!"

Shen kept his eyes closed, remembering something he had heard long ago: "There is no greater grudge than what your own conscience holds against you."

His Nana stood with the aid of her cane and gave him a stern, no-nonsense look. "Now," she said, "it's your turn…"

* * *

_A/N - Wow, Shen is sure procrastinating on his apology, isn't he? Oh wait, that's not SHEN procrastinating, it's the stupid author who wants to stretch everything out and add random scenes so that she can have more total chapters to the story..._

_Anyway, blah blah blah sad baby Shen, blah blah blah review to hug him, blah blah blah thank you.  
_


	8. An apology

**Long Shot**

_Chapter 8: An apology_

Shen's opportunity to apologize to Xun came much later that evening, after his eyes had already dried. The soothsayer had said, rather loudly and pointedly, that she was certain that Xun was up by now and that SOMEBODY ought to take a dinner tray to the bedridden wolf. Shen could take the hint. He piled rice and leftover soup into two bowls and headed off.

Xun was indeed awake and alert when his old friend entered his room. He smiled. "Hey again."

"Hope I didn't wake you," muttered Shen, still downcast.

Xun's smile didn't falter. "No, a jab of pain did a few minutes ago."

Shen winced, as if HE was feeling a jab of pain, then tentatively knelt to the floor. "I brought you some dinner leftovers, if you're interested," he offered lamely, holding out the tray.

"Quite." Xun grabbed the offered food without a moment's hesitation; he hadn't had enough soup earlier in the day, but hadn't thought it was very gracious to ask for more after three bowls. He immediately began slurping away, not noticing that his companion's eyes were filled with almost terrified anxiety, not realizing that the peacock was shaking.

Shen knew that the moment of truth had arrived; his entire body had been gripped by it in a rush of cold adrenaline. He had to be stronger than this; why was it so difficult to say two simple words, "I'm sorry?" Feeling slightly empowered by the seemingly uncomplicated nature of his task, he opened his mouth to speak…only to feel his eyes stinging once more.

Xun hadn't seen any of this internal struggle; he was still slurping away.

"I…I wanted to say…" Shen began, but his voice caught before he could finish.

Slowly, slowly, Xun lowered his bowl. His reaction was clear from the expression on his face: he was stunned. His rigidly-upright ears and the gaping quality of his lone intact eye said everything for him.

Shen was crying. Xun never would have thought that he'd see that again. Shen was CRYING. Shen hadn't cried since the two of them were twelve, since deciding that tears did nothing but show weakness. He had been repressing his grief for decades, but here he was, not even bothering to hide the tears that were visibly rolling down his face. In that moment, of all Xun's doubts that Shen had changed vanished. The fact that he was crying revealed all of his sanity…regular emotions…morality…

Now Shen had turned away in shame, but not because of his tears; he just couldn't bring himself to look at Xun anymore. The wolf placed the bowl back on the tray, still in shock, and finally said, "It's okay."

Shen breathed out a half-sob and shook his head. It wasn't okay. Nothing was okay…

"Shen!" Xun reached out and gripped his friend's sleeve, but Shen pulled away. He was struggling not to lose control of himself and frantically wiping his eyes, but the tears kept coming. All he had to do was apologize, and yet he couldn't find his voice…

Grunting from the pain and stiffness, Xun pushed himself up and grabbed Shen's wing. When he felt the familiar paw, Shen couldn't help it: he sobbed.

Xun sat up as far as he could, groaning from the ache in his chest. "Ugh – meet me halfway here," he grunted. "Ow."

Taking a deep breath, Shen slowly turned and crouched at the Xun's side…and with difficulty and a bit-back cry of pain, Xun put his arms around the peacock.

Shen froze. He was so astounded that his eyes seemed to forget that they had been crying. The experience of being hugged by someone that you had attempted to kill was strange enough…but just to add to the weirdness, he couldn't remember the last time that Xun had hugged him like this. They had been really friends until about Shen's twentieth birthday, and he knew for a fact that they had given up on hugs long before that.

Xun didn't move, not discouraged by Shen's rigidity. The embrace was awkward, but he really did feel better now. All of his uncertainty had vanished.

Finally, Shen raised his wings and returned the hug, knowing that Xun was no longer his former friend – because they were still friends now.

Xun smirked playfully. There were tears in his own eyes (actually, eye; he still only had one operational eye, and no amount of healing was going to fix that). "M-man, you really have turned into a crybaby," he joked weakly.

"Hmmph…" said Shen, who was also smiling faintly. "Some friend you are…"

"Says the friend who tried to kill me," Xun chuckled quietly.

This made Shen's eyes sting a bit more, although he was careful not to show it; he knew that the comment was only meant as a joke. He pulled away and pressed Xun back down on the bed. "Careful, don't hurt yourself…"

"Ah, it was worth the pain…" Xun groaned and clutched at his chest. "Or maybe not."

"I could get the healer if you need her," Shen offered.

"Psshaw, I don't need a healer! I'll be back up and on…" The wolf's ears suddenly folded backwards. "Well…on the streets…in no time…"

Shen was unable to keep worry from tainting his voice as he cautiously contradicted, "I don't think that's going to work, Xun…"

"Yeah, well, it's all I have…"

The peacock shook his head firmly. Now that the apology was over and done with, a great burden of guilt had been lifted from him, and his mind seemed to be spinning into motion. He and Xun were friends again – best friends, just like before. He was indebted to the wolf because of the attempt on his life. But Shen had taken Xun in, and if he gave him a permanent home…

His spirits were soaring so high with hope that he couldn't believe that he'd been frozen with fear a few minutes ago. Here was his chance to begin repaying his debt! All of the damage that he had caused – right here and now would be the place where he began to repair it. It was a task that he doubted that he would ever truly complete, but he would do as much as he could.

"I'm going to fix that," Shen declared fiercely.

"Yeah, right," scoffed Xun. "What are you gonna do? Tell everyone that you want me to stay here? I don't deserve – " He broke off when he realized just who he was talking to.

"…may I remind you that I, of all people, live here?" Shen stood up; his head was held high, and there was a definite trace of a smirk on his face. He had a superior look in his eyes that Xun recognized – not from the attempted invasion of China, but from when the two of them were kids, and Shen got a brilliant idea that he was sure would override Xun's plans, whatever they were.

"You've got a look on your face, peacock," Xun teased. "What are you plotting?"

"I'll tell you when I'm done plotting it. For now, you should rest." Shen picked up the tray holding the forgotten scraps of food, and moved towards the door, smiling. "You know Nana will kill me if I keep you up for much longer."

"I'll try…" Xun reclined with a grimace. "Night, Shen. And, for what it's worth…I really have missed you."

Shen looked at him as if he had just gone feral again.

"Missed me?" he repeated. "You missed an insane, genocidal warlord that nearly stabbed you death?"

Xun looked around the bedroom dramatically. "Do you see any insane, genocidal warlords in here, 'cause I don't. All I see is my friend."

Shen nearly teared up again, this time from happiness. At long last, he had been forgiven.

"Good night, Xun," he said, shutting the door behind him. "And…I've really missed you, too."

The soothsayer was waiting expectantly out in the hall when Shen closed the door to Xun's room, breathing out in relief. "So? How did it go?" she asked.

"Better than I thought," he answered, his head feathers dipping slightly. He sucked in a breath. "I did cry, though…I suppose you can't be mad at someone who's crying."

"What was his reaction?"

"Well…" Shen looked more than a bit embarrassed. "He hugged me."

"Aww," the soothsayer crooned. "Was he crying, too?"

"A bit, yes."

"I told you he still loves you…"

Shen rolled his eyes. "Don't push it. We're friends again, anyway."

"I knew he'd forgive you." The soothsayer smirked, getting that seer-knows-best expression on her face. "As a matter of fact, I saw it happening."

"And you couldn't have told me that before I went in there?" Shen exclaimed. "I was petrified!"

"It was best for you to overcome your fears on your own. As much as I love you, dear, you can't expect me to always be your crutch…"

"Well, you old goat," said Shen, affection apparent in his eyes and his voice, "you never do lead me astray, do you?"

She chuckled. "I try not to. After all, I'm your Nana…I know everything."

* * *

_A/N - Guys. THERE WAS ANOTHER CHAPTER SUBMITTED YESTERDAY. REVIEW IT PLZ. And get used to the fact that I often update more than once a day! I know it's a revolutionary new concept, but I'm on a roll here!_


	9. A new beginning

**Long Shot**

_Chapter 9: A new beginning_

Shen would have liked nothing more than to go to his room, spend an hour or so meditating, and then get some sleep, but he couldn't do that just yet. He had promised Xun that he would find him a home off the streets, and so he would. But accomplishing this task meant asking Master Shifu for a favor, and Shen wasn't entirely sure how well that would go over. He just had to hope for the best and try – for Xun's sake.

Once again, he was forced to wait, as Master Shifu was meditating (and if you wanted to do the one thing that was sure to get the grandmaster in a bad mood, all you had to do was interrupt him while he was meditating). He decided to try to get a bit of meditation in himself in order to steel his nerves, but no sooner had he taken his first deep breath then there was a knock on the door to his room. "Come in," he called without opening his eyes, expecting it to be the soothsayer.

But it was the panda.

"Uh, hi," said Po, and Shen, startled by the familiar voice and the heaviness of the footsteps walking in, opened his eyes. They held each other's gaze for a moment; then Shen's eyes instinctively started roaming around, looking anywhere but at his visitor.

"…I wanted to say something," Po pressed ahead, a bit discouraged by the peacock's silence.

"Go ahead, then," Shen told him, his feathers rising as he became tenser and more agitated.

Po cleared his throat. "Um…it's-pretty-cool-that-you-went-through-so-much-trouble-to-help-your-friend," he got out all in one breath.

Shen, having miraculously understood all that, answered with surprise, "but I DIDN'T go through so much trouble…I just found him and brought him here…"

"The bearded…goat lady said you apologized," Po pointed out (Shen rolled his eyes at this ridiculous term for his Nana). "And apologizing takes a lot of guts. I mean, you and I know that better than anybody, right?" He smiled in a weak attempt to make his statement a joke.

"I suppose so," muttered Shen, looking down now. "Is that all you came here to say?" He didn't imagine that it was; after all, he and the panda were definitely not FRIENDS, only allies sometimes in battle –

"Actually, no," Po replied predictably. "I came here to say that Master Shifu is impressed with you, 'cause it shows effort to repay your debt or something like that. So he told me to tell you that as long as Xun agrees to give up being a criminal and obeys the Jade Palace rules, he gets to stay here."

Shen felt as if someone had punched him in the stomach – in a good way (if that made any sense whatsoever).

"Well," he said cautiously, "I was going to ask him about that anyway, so…thank you for telling me."

"Welcome." Po was rubbing the back of his thick neck in embarrassment now. "And, um…tell Xun I'm not really as bitter about the whole getting-hammered-in-the-face thing as I let on."

Shen had to crack a small smile at that, even if he still couldn't look at the panda. "Will do."

Xun awoke the next morning filled to the brim with conflicting emotions. On one hand, he wanted to be ecstatic, since he had food, a place to stay, and his best friend back; on the other, he had no idea how long this was going to last, how the other Jade Palace residents were reacting to him being there (Po seemed to have already expressed his displeasure at the presence of the wolf), or whether or not he was going to be kicked out at any moment. But when Shen came in for the first time that day, he had a plate of breakfast spring rolls in his hands and a broad smile on his face, and Xun automatically felt his spirits lifting.

"I have good news and I have better news," said the peacock as he handed over the food.

Xun tried his best not to stuff his face; the instincts he had developed from starving in the wild would take a while to fade, it seemed. "What's the good news?"

"The good news is, you get to stay here for as long as it takes you to recover, which means until the healer says you're better."

Xun exhaled with relief; at least he wouldn't be set out on his own while he was still sick and injured. "Good. What's the better news?"

"The better news is…" Shen smirked. "You can stay here after that, if you want to."

Xun was certainly glad that he hadn't stuffed his face now, because if he had he surely would have choked.

"What?" he spluttered, swallowing rapidly in order to keep from spitting out his food. "That's – how did you do that? Why would they let me stay here?"

"Because they knew that almost everything you did wrong was because of me," responded Shen, rather calmly. "You followed me because you had loyalty to our friendship; you acted on my orders because you were obedient; and at the very end, you managed to stand up for yourself because you recognized that things had gone too far, and were strong enough to try and change them. Loyalty, obedience, and strength are admirable qualities, Xun."

"That's an optimistic way of looking at it," said Xun gruffly. "Considering I'm also a thief and a murderer."

"Again, because of me," said Shen softly. "And seeing as I live here…there's no reason why you shouldn't be granted the same privilege. Of course, no one's forcing you to stay here…if you wanted to find somewhere else…"

Xun chuckled dryly. "Really, where else could I go?"

"Hmm…" Shen appeared to be seriously considering this question, but the illusion was shattered when he answered, "Taiwan. You know, you always seemed to want to go there when we were seven or so…"

The wolf couldn't help but release a genuine laugh at this memory. "Oh, I remember that! I convinced you into running away, and then you got sick…"

"We both got in so much trouble for that," Shen added. "Some friend you were, Xun…"

"I was just trying to help…"

This time they both laughed, grinning at each other as if they were children again, fondly caught up in this bout of ancient nostalgia. The runaway situation had been close to traumatic at the time, but as adults they found it rather funny. What was that old saying, about laughing so that you didn't cry?

"I don't have any problem with staying," announced Xun, and he reclined on the bed mat that was now officially his just to show how at ease he was. "I mean, full-time servants and people bringing me whatever I want? Count me in!"

"The only problem is the obnoxious people who live here!" declared Shen.

"Oh really now?" challenged a familiar voice, and Shen felt himself suddenly being tickled from behind.

"Gah!" He spun around, and sure enough, Kurisu was standing behind him with her lips pursed and her hands on her hips. "Itty bitty kitty, what are you doing here?" he demanded.

"Just came in at the 'obnoxious people,'" she sniffed.

"Oh, come on…" Shen leaned towards her and lowered his voice. "You can't tell me that you don't think your brother is an obnoxious person.

"Ah…quite," she admitted, her ears rising in amusement.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm trying to talk to my old friend…"

She stuck out her tongue. "Sorr-ee."

"Go on!" Shen gave her a good tickling poke in the stomach, and she giggled and scurried off.

Xun snorted. "She's like your pet."

Shen smirked proudly, not at all bothered by this description. "Quite. I'm the only one here who can handle her."

"She's too hyper for my liking," complained Xun, judging by what he had seen of the easily excitable kitten so far.

Shen shrugged; he had known Kurisu for so long that he had gotten very, very used to tolerating her antics, and hardly noticed the annoying aspects of her anymore. "She mellows out if you know what to do. I wouldn't worried about getting saddled with watching her, though…that seems to be my job."

"Good." Xun returned his attention to his breakfast.

"No one would make you watch her, of course…everyone knows that cats and dogs don't get along – "

"I'm not a dog, you stupid peacock – or should I say ugly chicken?"

"You are most definitely a dog, Xun. You're practically a puppy…"

"Why I oughtta…."

"And what are you going to do about it, puppy? After all, you're still bedridden!"

Xun's lips twitched. "We'll see about that, bird brain," he declared, and setting his plate aside, he abruptly pounced on Shen.

Shen cried out, thrashing but unsure of how hard he could struggle to free himself because he didn't want to provoke his friend's injury. Xun seemed to have forgotten all about that, though – he had the peacock pinned, his tail and ears twitching in anticipation. He really did look like a puppy now.

"Xun, you let me up this INSTANT!" shouted Shen.

"Or what, oh mighty warlord?" smirked Xun. "You've lost all your threatening vibes."

Shen squirmed in his grip. "When I get up, you miserable mutt, so help me I'll – "

"Boys?"

Both of them turned their heads towards the doorway, where the soothsayer stood peering in through the still-open door. She was attempting to look stern, but there was definite amusement in her eyes and in the lines around her mouth.

"Oh no, don't start with this roughhousing," she warned crossly. "Is this what I have to look forward to from now on?"

As if fearing the wrath of the Nana, Xun scrambled off of Shen, rubbing his chest but not looking too pained at all. "You should be used to it by now!"

"Indeed I am." She rolled her eyes. "Your maturity levels seem to have regressed quite a bit, both of you."

"I guess that's something that happens when we're together." Xun looked at Shen and smirked. "Isn't that right, best friend?"

"Oh yes," Shen agreed as he pushed himself up. He smiled, feeling more truly happy than he thought he ever had. After all, he'd fixed one of his many mistakes; he'd begun to repay his debt; things were getting better. Maybe nothing was perfect yet, and maybe nothing ever would be, but at the moment that didn't matter. "Better" was good enough.

"Xun, I think this is the beginning – well, new beginning, anyway – of a beautiful friendship."

THE END

* * *

_A/N - Since apparently I wasn't getting any more reviews, I decided to go ahead and put up the last chapter._

_Will there be a sequel? Once again, the answer is yes. It's going to be called "Keeping a Secret" and will be posted later today. What's it about? Ah...let's just say that Shen was missing something by never looking Po in the eyes. I'll leave it at that. If you want to see it, please add me to your author alerts or check back regularly._

_Sad baby Shen is feeling very depressed, so you might want to drop him a few last hugs/reviews on your way out. Thanks for reading!_


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